#28 of 35 US cities · 2024
How pleasant is the weather in Chicago, IL?
In 2024, 45% of daytime hours in Chicago were enjoyable outdoors: 2,156 of 4,758 hours between 8 AM and 9 PM. That's #28 of 35 major US cities. May was the best month and January the worst.
- Enjoyable
- 45%
- Comfortable temp
- 52%
- Too cold
- 42%
- Too hot
- 5%
- Lost to rain
- 1.8%
- Lost to gusts
- 5.0%
Month by month
Share of each month's daytime hours (8 AM to 9 PM). Avg temp is the plain air temperature over those hours, not feels-like.
| Month | Enjoyable | Comfortable | Too cold | Too hot | Rain | Avg temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1% | 1% | 99% | 0% | 0.0% | 27°F |
| February | 21% | 23% | 77% | 0% | 0.3% | 40°F |
| March | 18% | 22% | 78% | 0% | 0.0% | 44°F |
| April | 39% | 51% | 49% | 0% | 1.8% | 53°F |
| May | 82% | 93% | 7% | 0% | 5.2% | 64°F |
| June | 67% | 81% | 1% | 18% | 4.4% | 74°F |
| July | 81% | 85% | 0% | 15% | 2.7% | 76°F |
| August | 68% | 77% | 0% | 23% | 3.2% | 76°F |
| September | 79% | 91% | 2% | 7% | 3.6% | 72°F |
| October | 64% | 76% | 24% | 0% | 0.5% | 62°F |
| November | 21% | 23% | 77% | 0% | 0.5% | 47°F |
| December | 2% | 2% | 98% | 0% | 0.0% | 34°F |
What limits outdoor time
Cold costs Chicago more hours than heat does: 42% of daytime hours were too cold, 5% too hot. Wind matters too: gusts took 5.0% of daytime hours.
Where you stand matters here. Of the comfortable hours, 18% were only comfortable in the sun and 28% only in the shade.
Weather escapes within driving distance
An hour's drive (about 45 miles) reaches places that average 4°F cooler in summer, but nowhere meaningfully warmer in winter. Distances are straight-line; temperatures are PRISM 1991–2020 averages.
How Chicago, IL compares
- Dayton, OH · #25 · 47%
- Columbus, OH · #26 · 47%
- Miami, FL · #27 · 47%
- San Antonio, TX · #29 · 45%
- Fort Worth, TX · #30 · 44%
- Dallas, TX · #31 · 44%
Questions
How many pleasant outdoor hours does Chicago, IL get?
2,156 hours in 2024, counting only 8 AM to 9 PM. That's 45% of daytime hours, about 166 days' worth of daytime, and ranks #28 of 35 major US cities.
What is the best month to be outside in Chicago, IL?
May, when 82% of daytime hours were enjoyable. July (81%) and September (79%) came next. January was the worst month, at 1%.
What makes outdoor time less pleasant in Chicago, IL?
Mostly temperature. 42% of daytime hours were too cold and 5% too hot. Rain took another 1.8%, and gusty wind 5.0%.
Scored with the default rule: 48–79°F feels-like in sun or shade, under 1 mm/h of rain, gusts under 27 mph, 8 AM to 9 PM. If you run hotter or colder than that, set your own range on the map. How the score works.